How do you wish someone a happy birthday in arabic? (egyptian dialect) I have seen both 'kol sana wenta tayeb' and 'sana helwa ya gameel'. What are the differences between these two phrases, and which

Lisa_USA

How do you wish someone a happy birthday in arabic? (egyptian dialect) I have seen both 'kol sana wenta tayeb' and 'sana helwa ya gameel'. What are the differences between these two phrases, and which is more commonly used? Is one more formal and the other more friendly/casual? Would it be appropriate to say both together as a birthday greeting? "sana helwa ya gameel, kol sana wenta tayeb" Thanks! (shukran)

Sep 2, 2010 2:36 PM

Answers · 10

'kol sana wenta tayeb'= 'كل سنة وانت طيب' = 'Each year and you're good' it's the most common phrase, And i prefer it =============== 'sana helwa ya gameel'="سنة حلوة يا جميل" it's the friendly phrase =============== you can said also "aid milad saaed"="عيد ميلاد سعيد"="happy birthday to you" but it's more formal.

September 2, 2010

Both are the same meaning but kol sana wenta tayeb is used when you wish some one happy birthday, but sana helwa ya gameel is used in the song of the birthday party when wishing somebody a happy birthday

September 3, 2010

Well, 'sana helwa ya gameel' is more likely used in the famous song: happy birthday to you... literally; it means "sweet year beautiful" and it is very unformal 'kol sana wenta tayeb' is more commonly used when addressing to a person.

September 2, 2010